News Releases

June 27, 2004

The Mexican delegation poses with WOCCU senior staff members during a meeting in Madison, WI.

Washington, D.C. – Officials
from
Mexico's two largest credit unions, Caja Popular
Mexicana and Caja Libertad, joined World Council
of Credit Unions, Inc. (WOCCU) staff and
representatives of the California, Texas and
Arizona credit union leagues to share their
stories of successful private sector-led credit
union development in Mexico. The weeklong visit
concluded Thursday.

During meetings with members of Congress, the
delegation asked lawmakers to support
microenterprise reauthorization and ensure that
the full amount authorized for microenterprise
programs be appropriated for fiscal year 2005.
A
bill now circulating in Congress proposes a
modest increase in the microenterprise budget,
as
well as an improved mechanism for awarding
foreign assistance microenterprise funding.
Microenterprise funds are distributed through
the
U.S. Agency for International Development
(USAID)
and are the source of the majority of financial
support for WOCCU development finance
projects.

To attest to the effectiveness of WOCCU's
programs, the Mexican credit union officials
explained the dramatic improvement in their
operations and outreach. With two years of
WOCCU's assistance, membership in Caja Popular
Mexicana increased by more than 60 percent and
delinquency decreased by nearly 70 percent. In
only one year, Caja Libertad opened four rural
microfinance branches to serve very poor women
and increased vital loan loss provisions from 58
percent to 100 percent. The Mexicans credited
WOCCU's technical assistance and aid from their
credit union league partners through WOCCU's
International Partnership Program.

Credit union league partners explained that
through their partnerships with the Mexican
credit unions, they gain valuable insight into
the Hispanic market and how to better serve the
significant unbanked immigrant population in
their respective states.

Delegation meets with the Inter-American Development Bank

During a meeting with the office of Rep. Joe
Baca
(D-CA), WOCCU senior manager Mark Cifuentes
presented a letter of endorsement, signed by
WOCCU president and CEO Arthur Arnold, for
legislation introduced by Baca to empower U.S.
federal credit unions to offer wire transfers,
money orders and check cashing to all in their
communities. Click to view letter

Caja Popular Mexicana began distributing
remittances in August 2003 on a pilot basis and
increased distribution to 300 branches by
November. As of May 2004, more than 15,000
remittances totaling $6.6 million have been
distributed. Ninety-two percent of receivers
are
women and the overwhelming majority of receivers
are credit union members. Non-members, reports
the credit union, are joining at a rate of 5
percent per month, allowing them access to a
full
range of financial services. Using these
numbers, Cifuentes stressed the importance of
Baca's efforts to remove obstacles to the flow
of
remittances, resulting in an infusion of money
in
countries targeted by the U.S. for foreign
assistance.

The delegation concluded their trip in
Madison,
WI on Friday, meeting with World Council senior
management
officials.

World Council of Credit Unions is the global trade association and development agency for credit unions. World Council promotes the sustainable development of credit unions and other financial cooperatives around the world to empower people through access to high quality and affordable financial services. World Council advocates on behalf of the global credit union system before international organizations and works with national governments to improve legislation and regulation. Its technical assistance programs introduce new tools and technologies to strengthen credit unions' financial performance and increase their outreach.

World Council has implemented more than 290 technical assistance programs in 71 countries. Worldwide, 57,000 credit unions in 103 countries serve 208 million people. Learn more about World Council's impact around the world at www.woccu.org.